Handheld electronics devices with multiple user sensory transducers and methods

ABSTRACT

An electronics device ( 100 ), for example, a cellular telephone, includes a plurality of discrete transducers, one of which is a dynamic loudspeaker device ( 162 ) and the other being a linear vibrating device ( 164 ). In another embodiment, two or more linear vibrators within device housing are driven with signals having different frequency and/or time variant characteristics to provide different sensory effects for the user.

FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE

[0001] The present disclosure relates generally to electronics deviceshaving transducers, and more particularly to electronics devices havingmultiple transducers capable of providing user perceptible sensations,for example, mobile wireless communications handsets having audioloudspeakers and tactile indicators, and methods therefor.

BACKGROUND

[0002] It is known generally to provide vibration alert sensations incellular telephones by rotating an eccentrically mounted mass. Theserotary devices however have slow response and attack times, whichsubstantially limits their range of applicability. Rotary vibrationdevices are used primarily for alerting users to incoming calls ormessages, an application for which expedient response times are notrequired.

[0003] U.S. Pat. No. 5,528,697 entitled “Integrated Vibrating And SoundProducing Device” discloses an integral device capable of producing bothaudible buzzer sounds and/or low frequency vibrations for use inradio-activated paging devices and in signal receivers forhearing-impaired individuals.

[0004] Integrated multi-function transducers inevitably compromiseperformance of both vibration and audio functions. Dynamic loudspeakers,for example, are preferably mounted in cavities having a closed-endportion and an open-end to promote optimal sound propagation. Mountingintegrated devices in cavities, however, tends to compromise thevibrator performance.

[0005] Existing integrated multi-function transducers suitable for usein cellular telephone applications also have large dimensions, sinceminimal transducer thickness and minimal diameter are required toprovide user perceptible vibration signal amplitudes and soundpressures. In at least some applications, particularly in increasinglysmaller cellular handsets favored recently by consumers, largeintegrated transducer packages pose substantial integration and assemblyissues. Additionally, potential radio frequency interference betweenintegrated transducers and radio antennas limits where integratedtransducers may be mounted in handset housings.

[0006] The various aspects, features and advantages of the presentinventions will become more fully apparent to those having ordinaryskill in the arts upon careful consideration of the following DetailedDescription of the Invention with the accompanying drawings describedbelow.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0007]FIG. 1 is an exemplary electronics device.

[0008]FIG. 2 is an exemplary response characteristic for a linearvibrating device.

[0009]FIG. 3 illustrates the linearity of the vibration level of alinear device over its operating range.

[0010]FIG. 4 is an exemplary response characteristic for a dynamicloudspeaker.

[0011]FIG. 5 is an exemplary electronics device housing having a dynamicloudspeaker.

[0012]FIG. 6 illustrates exemplary linear vibrating device mountingconfigurations in an electronics device housing.

[0013]FIG. 7 is an exemplary schematic circuit diagram.

[0014]FIG. 8 is another exemplary schematic circuit diagram.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0015]FIG. 1 illustrates an exemplary handheld electronics device 100,for example, a cellular telephone, or a personal digital assistance, ora digital organizer, or a laptop computer, or a handheld informationdevice, or some other device. The exemplary electronics device 100comprises generally a processor 110 coupled to memory 120, for example,ROM, RAM, EPROM, etc. The exemplary device also includes a display 130,though other device embodiments may not include a display.

[0016] In FIG. 1, the device also includes user inputs 140, for example,a keypad, and possibly pointers or other input devices. Some embodimentsof the device 100 include a radio transmitter or a receiver or atransceiver 150. Devices with a transmitter, recording capability, etc.,may also include a microphone input. The exemplary electronics device100 also includes outputs 160, for example, an audio output device 162,a tactile sensation generating output device 164, both of which arediscussed more fully below, among other output devices, for example,audio and data signal output jacks, which are known but not illustrated.

[0017] In one embodiment, the device includes first and second discretetransducers. The transducers may be of the same general type ordifferent types. The first and second transducers generally havecorresponding frequency characteristics, which may be similar ordifferent. In some embodiments, the frequency characteristics of thefirst and second transducers is the same, for example, in applicationswhere stereo sound is provided with two or more similar speakers or byother multi-phonic sound generating devices spaced apart on the housing.Other devices have two or more similar transducers with the samefrequency response characteristics. In some applications, for example,different resonance or vibration modes may be established with similartransducers oriented differently in the housing of the electronicsdevice. More generally, the frequency response of the first and seconddiscrete transducers is different. In one embodiment, for example, onetransducer is an audio transducer and the other one is a tactiletransducer. These and other aspects of the disclosure are discussed morefully below.

[0018] In one embodiment, one or more of the transducers is a linearvibrating device. Generally, linear vibrating devices have dynamicoutputs that are essentially proportional to input current, thus makingthese devices suitable for providing tactile sensations or alerts incellular handsets, pagers and in other electronics devices. Linearvibrating devices also have relatively fast response times compared withother vibrating devices, for example, rotating vibrators. The relativelyquick response times of linear vibrating devices enables their use in awide range of applications, for example, for providing tactile feedbackin response to keystroke inputs, and in other applications wheresubstantial delay is intolerable.

[0019] Linear vibrating devices are also generally capable of operatingin different transient modes than traditional rotating vibrationdevices. When stimulated, rotating vibration devices undergo transientphase passing through several resonant frequencies of the housing.Similar resonance effects are produced when rotating vibration devicesare de-stimulated. In contrast, linear vibrating devices may bestimulated at a single frequency with varying amplitudes or with complexsignals varying with time and/or frequency. Linear vibrating devicesthus allow more information to be conveyed to the user by choosingdifferent stimulus.

[0020]FIG. 2 is an exemplary frequency response curve for a linearvibrating device. The curve plotted in FIG. 2 is a measure of vibrationlevel versus frequency. The curve plotted in FIG. 3 illustrates thelinearity of an exemplary linear vibrating device response over asubstantial portion of its operating range. Linear electromechanicalvibrating devices suitable for the exemplary applications disclosedherein and other applications are available from Philips ElectronicsSound Solutions and from Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.

[0021] In another embodiment, one or more of the discrete transducers inthe exemplary electronics device is a dynamic loudspeaker. FIG. 4 is anexemplary dynamic loudspeaker frequency response curve, which is ameasure of sound pressure level versus frequency.

[0022] In one exemplary embodiment, the electronics device, for examplea cellular telephone, includes one or more linear transducers fortactile sensation and one or more dynamic loudspeakers for soundproduction. FIG. 5 illustrates an electronics device handset housing 500having a dynamic loudspeaker 510 rigidly mounted in a chamber or cavity520 in the housing. In some embodiments, the cavity 520 is onlypartially sealed, for example, in or along the rear portion 522 thereofto facilitate propagation of sound through a cavity opening 522 in aportion 502 of the housing. The opening may be on a back or rear-side ofthe housing or at some other location. In other embodiments, the cavitymay also include other structure, for example, vents, delay, compliantor inertial structures, for optimizing the audio performance of theloudspeaker.

[0023]FIG. 6 illustrates a housing portion 600 having one or more lineartransducers mounted thereon. In one configuration, one or moretransducers are mounted at corresponding locations in the housing, forexample, on a printed circuit board or on some other rigid structure ofthe device. In some cellular handset applications, for example, thetransducers are separately mounted on or near a portion of the housingthat optimizes the transmission of vibration energy to the user. In FIG.6, first and second linear vibrating transducers 610 and 620 aredisposed toward one end 602 of the housing, for example, a portion ofthe housing that clips or otherwise fastens on or near the user's body.

[0024] In applications where tactile sensation is desired, severalrelatively small-sized linear vibrating transducers may be used to makeuse of whatever space is available in the housing without the need for asingle, relatively large space for accommodating an integratedtransducer. Separation of the transducers, for example, a dynamicloudspeaker and a linear vibrating device or multiple linear vibrators,also increases the likelihood that the discrete transducers may bepositioned away from components susceptible to interference, forexample, radio frequency transceiver antennas. The separation of dynamicloudspeakers from tactile transducers, for example, linear vibrators orother vibrating devices, permits optimizing the performance of eachtransducer without compromising one or the other.

[0025] In some embodiments, one or more linear vibrating transducers aremounted within the housing in orientations that optimize the transfer ofvibration energy from the one or more transducers to the user. Multipletransducers may also be located and oriented to provide differenttactile sensations. In FIG. 6, for example, it may be desirable in someapplications to orient one transducer 630 so that it vibratespredominately transversely to a second transducer 640, and moregenerally so that the predominant vibration axes of transducers areanti-parallel. In other embodiments however, it may be desirable toalign the vibrations axes of the multiple transducers, for example, toprovide a pronounced effect.

[0026] The one or more transducers are generally coupled to a drivercircuit. In the exemplary embodiment of FIG. 7, a dynamic loud speaker710 is coupled to a corresponding driver circuit 712, which is an audiofrequency band amplifier. A linear vibrating device 720 is coupled to acorresponding driver circuit 722, which amplifies in a correspondingfrequency band. The exemplary driver circuits 712 and 722 are discrete,although in other embodiments they may be integrated in a basebandprocessor or with the corresponding transducers.

[0027] In one embodiment, a loudspeaker is driven from one channel of astereo output signal and a linear vibrator is driven from the otherchannel of the stereo output signal, wherein the signal strength andfrequency range for each channel is selected appropriately for eachtransducer at a stereo system signal processor from which the stereooutput signal is produced. Thus in FIG. 7, the drivers 712 and 722 eachreceive corresponding signals from a processor, for example, processor110 in FIG. 1. In one exemplary embodiment, first and second signals areinput to the driver 712 and 722 from right and left channel signaloutputs of a common stereo signal source, although in other embodimentsthe signal may have other sources.

[0028] In some embodiments, multiple transducers are driven by the samesource. In the exemplary circuit of FIG. 8, a common signal is appliedto first and second transducers 820 and 830 by a common driver circuit830, which must provide signal amplification for frequencies common toboth of the transducers 820 and 830. In FIG. 8, circuits 815 and 825condition the signal output from the common driver 830 beforeapplication of the signal to the corresponding transducers. The circuits815 and 825 are, for example, passive crossover networks thatappropriately filter the signals applied to the correspondingtransducers 810 and 820, respectively. In one embodiment, the commonsignal is on one of the right or left channels of a stereo outputsignal.

[0029] In one embodiment, the electronics device includes first andsecond linear vibrators mounted separately within the housing, forexample, at different locations therein and/or with their primaryvibration axes oriented differently.

[0030] The first and second linear vibrators may be driven to provide avariety of vibration sensations or effects perceived by the user. Insome applications, for example, first and second linear vibrators aredriven with input signals having different time variant characteristics.In other applications, the vibrators are driven with input signalshaving different frequency characteristics.

[0031] In one embodiment, for example, at least two linear vibrators aredriven with input signals to provide different beats in the electronicshandset. In another embodiment, at least two linear vibrators are drivenwith input signals to pan a vibrating sensation across portions of theelectronics handset. In yet another embodiment, the electronics handsethousing is caused to rock by driving multiple linear vibrators withcorresponding input signals that provide rocking motion.

[0032] While the present disclosure and what is considered presently tobe the best modes thereof have been described sufficiently to establishpossession by the inventors and to enable those of ordinary skill tomake and use the inventions, it will be understood and appreciated thatthere are equivalents to the exemplary embodiments disclosed herein andthat many modifications and variations may be made thereto withoutdeparting from the scope and spirit of the inventions, which are to belimited not by the exemplary embodiments but by the claims appendedhereto.

What is claimed is:
 1. A handheld electronics device, comprising: a handheld housing; a transducer driver circuit having a signal output; a first discrete transducer disposed in the handheld housing, the first transducer having a first transducer input coupled to the signal output of the transducer driver circuit; a second discrete transducer disposed in the handheld housing, the second transducer having a second transducer input coupled to the signal output of the transducer driver circuit, the first transducer having a first frequency characteristic, the second transducer having a second frequency characteristic.
 2. The handheld electronics device of claim 1, the first transducer is a linear vibrating device, the second transducer is a dynamic loudspeaker.
 3. The handheld electronics device of claim 1, the transducer driver circuit having an amplifier with an output corresponding to the signal output, the first and second transducers coupled to the same output of the amplifier.
 4. The handheld electronics device of claim 3, the first transducer coupled to the output of the amplifier by a first passive signal conditioning circuit, the second transducer coupled to the output of the amplifier by a second passive signal conditioning circuit.
 5. The handheld electronics device of claim 3, comprising a stereo signal source having right and left channel signal outputs, the amplifier has an input coupled to one of the right or left stereo channel signal outputs of the stereo signal source.
 6. The handheld electronics device of claim 1, the transducer driver circuit having first and second amplifiers having corresponding first and second outputs, respectively, the first transducer coupled to the first output of the first amplifier, the second transducer coupled to the second output of the second amplifier.
 7. The handheld electronics device of claim 6, comprising a stereo signal source having right and left channel signal outputs, the first amplifier has a first input coupled to one of the right or left stereo channel signal outputs of the stereo signal source, the second amplifier has a second input coupled to the other of the right or left stereo channel signal outputs of the stereo signal source.
 8. The handheld device of claim 1, the first frequency characteristic of the first transducer is different than the second frequency characteristic of the second transducer.
 9. The handheld device of claim 1, the first and second transducers are both linear vibrating devices, the first frequency characteristic of the first transducer is substantially the same as the second frequency characteristic of the second transducer.
 10. The handheld electronics device of claim 1 is a communications handset including a processor and a radio transceiver coupled to the processor, an audio receiver coupled to the processor.
 11. The handheld electronics device of claim 1, the first discrete transducer is a first linear vibrator, the second discrete transducer is a second linear vibrator.
 12. The handheld electronics device of claim 11, vibration axes of the first and second linear vibrators have different orientations within the housing.
 13. The handheld electronics device of claim 12, the transducer driver circuit for generating first and second drive signals having different time variant characteristics and for providing the first and second drive signals to the first and second linear vibrators.
 14. The method of claim 12, the transducer driver circuit for driving the first and second linear vibrators with input signals that provide different beats.
 15. The method of claim 12, the transducer driver circuit for driving the first and second linear vibrators of the electronics handset with input signals that provide a rocking motion of the electronics handset.
 16. The method of claim 20, the transducer driver circuit for driving the first and second linear vibrators of the electronics handset with input signals that a pan vibrating sensation across the electronics handset.
 17. A method in a electronics handset, the method comprising: providing a vibrating sensation with a first linear vibrator of the electronics handset in response to a first input signal applied to the first linear vibrator; providing the vibrating sensation with a second linear vibrator of the electronics handset in response to a second input signal applied to the second linear vibrator, the first and second linear vibrators are discrete devices disposed within a housing of the electronics handset.
 18. The method of claim 17, providing the vibrating sensation with the first and second linear vibrators of the electronics handset in response to first and second input signals having different time variant characteristics.
 19. The method of claim 17, driving the first and second linear vibrators of the electronics handset with the first and second input signals to provide different effects perceived by the user.
 20. The method of claim 17, driving the first and second linear vibrators of the electronics handset with the first and second input signals to provide different beats.
 21. The method of claim 17, driving the first and second linear vibrators of the electronics handset with the first and second input signals to provide a rocking motion of the electronics handset.
 22. The method of claim 17, driving the first and second linear vibrators of the electronics handset with the first and second input signals to pan the vibrating sensation across the electronics handset.
 23. The method of claim 17, providing the first signal and the second signal to the first and second linear vibrators as a composite signal.
 24. The method of claim 23, conditioning the composite signal provided to the first and second linear vibrators with corresponding passive circuits.
 25. The method of claim 17, providing the first and second signals to the first and second linear vibrators as discrete, non-composite signals. 